Filsenberg

The Filsenberg rises 805 metres above sea level on the Swabian Alb south of Öschingen, a district of Mössingen in Baden-Württemberg. Its open summit plateau is one of the few unwooded patches on the Alb, where rare wildflowers grow in the thin soil. Orchids, cat’s-paw, Turk’s-cap lilies and gentians colour the slopes each summer. Since 1983 the whole 35.8-hectare plateau has been protected as a nature reserve.

The reserve preserves the variety of plants and animals that thrive on these nutrient-poor meadows. Mowing is done late in the season to allow seeds to set, and fertiliser is kept out to keep the sward open. Botanists recognise three main grassland types here: dry meadow, mat-grass sward and edge communities along paths and fences. The reserve lies within the Middle Kuppenalb natural region, a landscape of rounded hills and small valleys.

Visitors walk across the open plateau to enjoy wide views over the Alb plateau and the Neckar valley. A network of grassy tracks leads around the edge of the reserve without disturbing the protected centre. In spring the orchids appear first, followed by the lilies and gentians through summer. The reserve is quietest at dawn and dusk, when deer graze on the edges of the meadows.